I saw the Tarantino film, and I was surprised to find it listed amongst your Good films here. Sure, it had its moments, as all Tarantino films do, but on the whole I found that I could take it or leave it. Tarantino committed the cardinal sin of filmmaking, IMHO. The film put me to sleep. It happened right around the middle, during the start of that overly unnecesarry subterranean French saloon scene. I’m already yawning just thinking about it. And I know that nobody likes a one-trick pony, but I sure wouldn’t have minded seeing more “Hugo Stiglitz!”-style introductions of the “Basterds”. I found myself knowing next-to-nothing about most of those characters. And as a result, I found myself not caring a whole helluva lot about them. I could root for the Basterds, because they were snuffing Nazis, but somehow it all just felt so…what’s the word…empty? Perhaps that’s enough for John Q Public moviegoer, but not for me. On the whole, I found “Valkyrie” to be more enjoyable. Tom Cruise had a tremendous supporting cast, to boot. Apologies to Brad Pitt, whos supporting cast in “Basterds” was lukewarm at best.

In related news, “Angels And Demons” was certainly a praiseworthy effort by Messrs. Ron Howard and Tom Hanks. “Moon” was a stellar effort (pun intended) by Messrs. Duncan Jones and Sam Rockwell. “Sherlock Holmes” is a strong candidate for best film of the year, thanks to outstanding jobs by Messrs. Guy Ritchie, Robert Downey Jr, and Jude Law. I’m already hoping that they make many sequels together! “Anvil: The Story Of Anvil” is another example of fine filmmaking this year. Everyone loves an underdog, and that film perfectly captures the underdog aesthetic.

Honorable Mentions include: “Star Trek”, “Fantastic Mr. Fox”, “Zombieland”, and “District 9″